Leaving the kids...

I was so nervous to leave the kids for the weekend. The only thing that made me feel better was knowing they were in very capable hands - thanks Zach and Caitlin!

Do they look like they miss us at all?
Having fun watching movies in amazing forts...
playing at the zoo...
Nope, they didn't miss us too much. I think they were happy to have us home, but they were so sad to see Zach and Caitlin leave!

Cataract Canyon Raft Trip

We took our first vacation without the kids over Memorial Day weekend. It was a much needed break after lots going on with Russ buying a new practice, and school ending... I was really worried about white water rafting and camping being 6 months pregnant - not to mention leaving the kids for a place we couldn't reach them by phone... but it was a really fun trip, and I'm so glad I didn't chicken out:) It was beautiful, and I actually slept pretty well most of the time. It was fun spending time with Russ and his parents, siblings, and some great family friends!

Here we are at the end of our trip, floating back...

Here are all the girls... can you find me? We're really styling, huh. It was worth all the rain gear though because we were soaked a couple of minutes later.
We had some awesome sunsets...
Hmmm... the dinner crew - or most of it.
The boys did most of the cooking, and the food was fantastic! We girls got to relax, talk, read, every night while we waited for our dinner. What a treat!

Campfire

We drove out west into the middle of nowhere with our friends Zach & Caitlin to take the kids off-roading and build a fire for hotdogs and smores. It was tons of fun, and we felt like we were far away from home even though it was pretty close:)

IT'S A BOY!

Well, I've tried making these words in a neat font really big... but I'm on a new computer and it's late and I can't seem to make anything cool work. But, you've got the message anyway!

We're so excited to have another boy in our family! I think we were all kind of expecting another girl this time for some reason... but we are so happy about this new little guy! And don't feel too bad for Sadie - her brothers dote on her a lot more than they pick on her. In fact, they rarely if ever pick on her, so she'll be just fine. Hopefully not too spoiled:)

Hooray! We can't wait for the newest member to arrive, sometime around September 8th. Just in time for Cole and Parker to be settled back in school.

A Few Random Moments...

Not often we have extra time before church to take a couple of pictures, but a couple of weeks ago we managed one!

I LOVE that Cole is reading now! This is what I found the other day when I came out of the bathroom in the morning. Everyone quiet, happily listening to Cole read a story. It's especially nice since all Sadie wants lately is for someone to read to her.

And this is what can be done with half an Oreo.

A little more Arizona...

We had the great fortune of being in a hotel room right next to Russ' parents. We always enjoy spending time with them, and it was fun to hang out there together every now and then in the evenings.

Here are a couple of good shots we got: one of Cole with his "Grandma Peggy," and another with Grandpa Trapnell, who was kind enough to read them all stories before bed.

We were the last of the Trapnell group to head home, so we spent our last afternoon running around Mesa and visiting with one of Russ' best friends growing up. Shocking that after almost 9 years of marriage, this was my first trip ever to Arizona to see where Russ grew up. He and Mitch were next door neighbors and friends from the time they were 2 or 3. It was so fun to see Mitch and Betsy and their 3 cute kids. They were all so fun and nice, and we're glad we live a little closer now so we can see them a little more often. Our kids loved hanging out with their "big kids."

Spring Break #2

Well, we really didn't do anything for our spring break here in Albuquerque... except go to the zoo. So, we celebrated Utah's spring break with most of Russ' family instead. We all met in Scottsdale, AZ, split up into our separate hotels at night, but spent much of every day all together.

The weather was perfectly warm... just right for swimming. We spent a few of the days at Chris & Sheri's resort. It was perhaps less relaxing for Russ and I than some of the others since we forgot the kids life vests, and 3 of the 4 can't swim. Wow! We need to really get going on those lessons! But, the kids loved this little stream in front of our lawn chairs and spent at least half the time splashing around in there. So, Russ and I didn't have to be in the water the entire time:)

The second day we drove down near Tuscon to the desert museum. The kids all had a great time seeing all the desert animals and lots of cacti. One of the favorite parts was all of the birds. These are definitely Russ' kids! Especially Parker and Sadie. Those kids just LOVE watching the birds. Sadie spent some very excited moments playing with a roadrunner through the glass, and they all loved the aviary and hummingbird exhibit. I just wish I had taken more pictures of all of the huge Saguaro cacti all around. It was amazing just to drive down there - I never would have expected to enjoy seeing that so much! I don't think there's really any other place like it!

Here are a couple of shots of Sadie in the aviary and with Russ - in her excitement just after meeting the friendly roadrunner.